UNION COUNTY, N.C. — An effort is underway in Union County to bridge the labor gap in agriculture.
More than half the county’s land is used for agriculture, and it needs more people to work the land.
Union County Public Schools, working with local partners, are addressing the issue head on as they expand the county’s AgroTechnology program.
UCPS expanded the program to two elementary schools
UCPS' AgTech program hopes to bridge the labor gap in local agriculture
UCPS' program now runs from kindergarten through high school
The AgTech program expanded to two elementary schools this year, Union and Wingate. Now, every few weeks for 40 minutes a day, students are exposed to farming lessons as part of an elective program.
Union Elementary teacher Michelle Johnson said she and her colleague had to start from scratch.
“We had no curriculum whatsoever, and we have come up with — there is me and one other teacher at Wingate Elementary, and we have together planned any and all curriculum for this program, with the help of assistance of Georgia,” Johnson said.
Johnson is in her 21st year of teaching but is in her first year cultivating personal hobbies with work. UCPS named Johnson Union Elementary’s first AgTech teacher over the summer.
“My great grandparents are the far back as I know that were farmers. And then, my grandparents lived in the original homestead. So, we farmed all that around there. We used to do row-crop farming, and then we just changed over to strictly beef cows,” Johnson added.
She and her husband own a 57-acre cattle farm. So, when the position opened up this summer to teach agriculture to elementary school kids Johnson did not hesitate.
“If I could make sure that at least one child in this school building walks away and wants to either become a farmer, or an agronomist, or anything dealing with the realm of agriculture, it would make my heart happy and complete,” Johnson explained.“If I could make sure that at least one child in this school building walks away and wants to either become a farmer, or an agronomist, or anything dealing with the realm of agriculture, it would make my heart happy and complete,” Johnson explained.
The class is offered to kindergarten through fifth-grade students at the school. Joshua Baker and Ainsley Burner are two of the fifth graders in the class.
“If you’re just a beginner of farming and you really want to learn about it and you want to experience, because your grandfather or somebody did it, you can because she’s a good teacher to teach you,” Baker said.
His classmate also enjoys the class.
“It’s helping me a lot, because I’m pretty new on like, the cow side. And then like we’ll learn things here and there about cows, and it really helps and I can bring it home for ideas,” Burner added.
Union County’s AgTech program now runs at every grade level, kindergarten through high school. The county’s existing AgTech programs at East Union Middle and Forest Hills High schools will continue.
